The Crimson Dragon - Chapter 12

Chapter 12

 To be honest, Claudius was already on the path towards awesomeness a long time ago. Be it the Five Coloured Evil Dragons, the Metallic Dragons or any other dragon species, their Dexterity remained as 10 throughout their whole life. Mercury Dragons were the only dragon species which had increased Dexterity as they grew. From time to time, there were exceptions which had 11 or 12 Dexterity instead of the standard 10, but none of them could raise their attribute stat like Claudius. He was the first ever dragon to have increased Dexterity as he aged and levelled up.

 The 7-metre-long Crimson Dragon felt that he was currently a decent fighter. This tiny bit of arrogance was most likely the side effect of fusing the human mind into a dragon. Claudius’ arrogance was somewhat justified as well, as he could now suppress most beasts and monsters with his power. As a confident Crimson Dragon, Claudius finally left his lair in broad daylight, spreading his wide wings under the warm sunlight. His wings were also around 7 metres long, and his bright Crimson scales shone with brilliance as they reflected rays of sunlight. Under the pleasant sky, the Crimson Dragon raised his head proudly.

Claudius looked much more intimidating than other Crimson Dragons of his age. He gave off a valiant atmosphere as he stood on his well-developed hind legs. Claudius’ front legs were not inferior to his kin as well, and on his Cerulean Dragon-like neck was a ferocious looking head. As Claudius observed his own reflection in the pond, he scratched his chin with his claws and thought, “Perhaps my mother had some dirty secrets with a Cerulean Dragon?”

 Claudius’ chin certainly resembled a Cerulean Dragon; his mandible had began to enlarge and protruded slightly as he grew up, which looked like a triangle support soldered onto an armoured truck. (TL note: basically big as hell and looks weird)

 “Such a large chin……”

 Claudius then stroked the horns on his head. Out of the four horns, two pointed backwards while the other two diverged towards the left and right respectively. The horn on his nose was also different from normal Crimson Dragons, but it was nothing like Cerulean Dragons this time. Such knowledge was purely obtained from the Inheritance ceremony, and it was also how Claudius knew that prognathous jaws were the characteristics of Cerulean Dragons. Typical Crimson Dragons had a single tiny horn on their snout, while Cerulean Dragons had two significantly larger horns which bent sideways. Unlike the two species, Claudius had two horns on his nose, with the longer horn in front while the shorter one was behind.

 “They look more like rhinoceros horns, though my horns are definitely smaller……”

 Claudius felt a sense of déjà vu as he looked at his own reflection, and he began searching through his mind for clues. As he continued to recall various designs of dragons in games back on Earth, Claudius eventually found what he was looking for.

 “Ah ha! Finally got it!” Claudius slammed his fist onto his chest, “Look at me! I definitely look like a young Deathwing! Just that my chin’s not made of steel……”

 Claudius then revelled in his awesome look for half a day before realizing there were things which he had to do. After living in this region for 3 years, Claudius was familiar with the territory distribution of the area. He now did not have to worry about his safety, as the only creature around which could be troublesome was the Brutal Bear. It was obvious that bears could not fly, so Claudius could easily dodge its attacks by simply flying. While numerous beasts resided in the forests, Claudius had yet to spot a human. Floren was a rather barren land, with approximately 60 to 70% of the land void of humans or human-related species such as beastmen. Gnomes and goblins couldn’t really be counted as humans. Without the intervention of mankind, nature prevailed and vegetation was overabundant. Some strange grass even grew on the burnt soil in his lair, and Claudius could feel magical power from the grass. The magical power felt quite similar to his magical power as well.

 After sunbathing and appreciating his own looks, Claudius’ stomach grumbled. He leapt from the spot, flapping his wings as ascended. A huge air pressure was exerted on the ground, blowing soil and dust everywhere. From the mini sandstorm, the Crimson Dragon gushed out a burst of flames. Even in the skies, Claudius was now safe from attacks. The attacks from the Giant Eagles could not even put a scratch to his enhanced scales. Claudius was now larger than the Giant Eagles as well, not to mention he could utilize his four limbs in battle while the eagles could only use the two claws. Claudius’ combat power was superior to the eagles, and apart from adult griffons, nothing could pose a threat to him in the air. This also meant that he could freely choose his prey.

 “I’m done with the damn mushrooms!”

 As he groaned in ‘Earthly’ languages, Claudius found that his first language was Chinese. His thought processes were completely in Chinese, but Claudius could also speak English, French, Russian and a bit of Japanese. Other than Chinese, he was more proficient in the Common language and Dragon language than ‘Earthly’ languages. Claudius was only slightly better in the 4 languages when compared to the Spirit language and Beastmen language.

 On the surface, plenty of herbivores could be seen munching grass. Claudius was now flying above the grassland instead of the forests, hence animals such as bulls, wild horses and donkeys, as well as antelopes were present. As hunting was a somewhat troublesome task, Claudius wanted to finish it as soon as possible. Thus, he chose the largest one among the grass-munching animals: an adult bull.

 If Claudius chose to hunt antelopes or wild donkeys, he would have to hunt a few more of them in order to fully satisfy his hunger. Hunting the agile horses required too much effort, therefore the slow bulls were the ideal targets. Claudius did not even consider preying on unicorns and minotaurs, as hunting magical beasts was too much of a hassle. Why should he risk his life battling the magical beasts when he could kill a bull without breaking a sweat? When Claudius was younger, he was already capable of killing bulls, although the method was a bit dangerous. With his current power, the Crimson Dragon swiftly killed his target and began devouring the corpse.

Utilizing his claws and his enormous mouth, the body of the bull disappeared in no time. After spending 30 short minutes, all that remained were bones and the head, which would soon be consumed by carrion-eating animals. Without the harassment from other carnivores, especially the Brutal Bear, it was a pleasant meal for Claudius. He rubbed his stomach with satisfaction, as it was the best meal Claudius had had in the past few years. After Claudius began hiding in his underground lair, he rarely had the opportunity to eat meat. This unusual dragon did not have the hobby of hunting, and he would never massacre other creatures just to satisfy his ego like other dragons. Now full, Claudius instinctively flew towards the highest hill nearby. Crimson Dragons had the habit of resting on high ground while overlooking the vast land.

Coincidentally, there was a suitable spot on one of the close mountains. The rocky mountain had a vertical slope, and had an altitude of around 100 metres. To the adult Silver Dragons, Gold Dragons and Crimson Dragons who liked to idle on mountains, this height was way too short, but it was already quite incredible for a minor like Claudius. After landing on the rocks on the peak, Claudius laid down and observed the boundless land. Most of the visible area belonged to the Brutal Bear, while the Savage Wolverine controlled the regions on the edges.

“This will all be mine very soon!” Claudius proclaimed while unintentionally breathing sparkles of fire from his nostrils.